fraser and kally's wedding

fraser and kally picked a spectacular location for their wedding, renting the entire main lodge of canmore's alpine club hostel.  it was a serious party, in a beautiful setting with awesome people.  hanging out with old friends was a highlight, as was meeting fraser and kally's families and the multitude of international friends that flew in from around the globe.

getting ready in a hostel was a lot of fun.  the bride getting ready two doors down (and 30 min before go time) along with the other wedding guests made for an informal enjoyable vibe to what can sometimes be a tense time.

speaking of tense, stormclouds loomed above canmore all day, sprinkling rain just before the ceremony, only to dissipate just as people were being seated, never to be seen again.

i was honoured to officiate the wedding of one of my closest friends.  it was a lot of work, but putting together a ceremony in consultation with fraser and kally tied kylie and i to their relationship and to their families and allowed us to know them better.  fraser and i have not lived in the same town for over a decade, so the communication and planning was welcome.

kally of course was gorgeous.  her sister alexia flew in with her husband from philadelphia to be her maid of honour.

aaron and alexia also gave some advice about relationships during the ceremony.

fraser and kally wrote their own vows.  friends and family gathered around the couple for the final part of the ceremony, to better hear the vows and also to make vows of their own.

 the venue, on a rise surrounded by sparse trees overlooking the three sisters was perfect to bring people in and produce a personal intimate feel in a majestic setting.

it is really fun to pronounce someone husband and wife in the presence of their community.

after the ceremony it was time to party!

the interior of the hostel was done up hunting lodge style, with big exposed beams and a huge hearth.  it was a tight fit to get everyone in, which again contributed to the intimate feel.

 the party was a great mix of family and friends and interesting people we had never met.  it was great to spend some extended time with katherine and chris and family, currently in exile in ontario.

fraser had rented a sweet sound system and the party pulsed all night.  the weather was perfect, and we spent the majority of the night on the above deck.  i climbed into my bunk at 3am, leaving the couple and a bunch of jet lagged intercontinental travellers still going strong.

the next morning fraser and kally woke and cooked everyone a huge brunch with norwegian waffles, deluxe scrambled eggs, fruit and of course BACON!

once again the weather cooperated and the party deck turned into a spectacular brunch deck.  i like the way this picture lines fraser's family in the foreground, kylie's family in the midground and canmore's pride in the background.

after the brunch people separated to explore the mountains in smaller groups and then reconnected for a bbq dinner and a great campfire.  most of the guests from afar stayed in the hostel a second night, extending the celebrations to almost biblical proportions.  the extended party was a great way to get to know kally better, hanging out with her and her family and fraser and kally's lab colleagues.  it was heartening to have fraser's life choices confirmed so abundantly!  ;-)

the next morning we said our slow goodbyes and then went for a canyon hike with aaron.  canmore is our kind of destination wedding!

after aaron left, kylie and i checked into the paintbox lodge in canmore and went out for an amazingly tasty dinner at the crazyweed cafe.  (both businesses HIGHLY recommended by marc and kylie)

the hotel had sweet townie bikes for us to use.  canmore has a gorgeous bike path network even aside from all the crazy mtn biking and hiking trails.

mmm... porkbelly watermelon salad.

and finally, after an amazing celebration, some time with old friends and some time on our own, kylie and i hopped in the subaru and made the quick drive back to lethbridge to see our boys.  four days away was perfect.  the wedding was perfect.  canmore is gorgeous.  nice work fraser and kally!